This chapter explores Russia's strategic efforts to manipulate right-wing public opinion in the U.S., aiming to create civil unrest and division. It examines how Russian disinformation tactics have evolved, leading to alarming narratives that resonate with certain American political figures, especially regarding the conflict in Ukraine. The chapter raises ethical concerns about the financial motivations behind conservative influencers and their ties to broader disinformation strategies that threaten the integrity of political discourse.
Last week, the Department of Justice announced major indictments alleging that, among other things, the Kremlin was paying right-wing influencers, like Dave Rubin, Tim Pool, and Benny Johnson, to spread Russian propaganda. The payments were funneled through a Tennessee-based company called Tenet Media, and while Rubin, Pool, and Johnson deny knowledge of the plot ... they don’t seem to have asked too many questions about the mysterious benefactor who was supposedly funding Tenet and paying them unseemly large amounts of money.
Unfortunately, this is only the latest in a string of foreign influence campaigns coming from Russia, China and Iran that target American elections. To break down all the news, Kara is joined by Julia Davis, Alex Stamos, and Brandy Zadrozny. Julia is a columnist for the Daily Beast, an investigative reporter, and the creator of the Russian Media Monitor; Alex is the chief information security officer at SentinelOne, the founder of the Stanford Internet Observatory, and a former chief security officer at Facebook; and Brandy is senior reporter at NBC News who covers the Internet, especially politics, tech, and extremism.
Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find Kara on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher
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